


AWOL

by w3llthatdidntwork



Category: Person of Interest (TV)
Genre: Angst, F/F, Root - Freeform, RootxShaw - Freeform, and shaw kinda shorta not caring but actually caring, angst angst angst, i also can't think of a title, mutual having each others backs, my favorite anti hero's, no smut this time guys, root being reckless, root's past mention, root/shaw - Freeform, sameen shaw - Freeform, seriel killer mention, shoot, some sexual tension, torture mention
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-02
Updated: 2017-03-02
Packaged: 2018-09-27 23:43:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10057280
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/w3llthatdidntwork/pseuds/w3llthatdidntwork
Summary: Root comes across a number that hits a little to close to home and takes matters into her own hands.





	

**Author's Note:**

> This comes from the idea that what if Shaw see's how reckless Root becomes when she lets herself up for torture (like she did with Control) in order to get under her enemies skin. How would Shaw react to that?
> 
> Okay, this has also been in my drafts since October and it doesn't fit anywhere but I just had to complete it and get it out. I also rewrote this one three times and I don't think I got what I wanted to get out of it but here. This one has been a pain.

“Hi sweetie, your a sight for sore eyes,”

Root heard herself say but even to her the words sounded hollow after the day she had just been through. She cleared her throat and tried again, throwing in a more sultry tone. “Care for a late night snack.”

“Shut up, Root.”

Root watched as Shaw closed the remaining space between them until they were uncomfortably close. Well, they would be uncomfortably close for anyone else. The two didn’t even care that they were in a crowded airport. Root wordlessly took one of Shaw’s carry on bags from the plane without resistance from her usual hostile companion. Shaw wasn’t paying attention, her eyes were locked on the purple bruising around Root’s neck.

“She knows,” The Machine whispered in Root’s ear but Root went on as if she didn’t hear.

“Are you sure? We won’t get back to the cabin for another hour but I guess I could always cook up something for you later,” Root tried to distract her attention away. Shaw scrunched her nose in disgust at the suggestion and averted her gaze up to Root’s eyes. The horrible cooking offer worked the way the hacker intended.

“No, I’m getting a burger on the way up there.”

It was snowing and it made the drive to the cabin agonizingly slow. Shaw did get her burger from a drive through Carls Jr. The food kept the other woman busy as Root navigated the slick roads with the help of The Machine. Shaw wasn’t supposed to be up here for this mission. Root had just gotten a heads up from The Machine two hours ago and then insisted that she’d pick up the shorter woman from the airport herself. The Machine didn’t argue and Root needed the distraction.

“Do you want me to look at that?” Shaw broke the silence. She didn’t need to specify what she needed to look at. Despite Root’s best efforts, the hacker couldn’t hide the bruising and her split lip was just at the starting phase of a scab.

“No, sweetie. I’m fine.”

“I’m going to try this again,” Shaw said with a heavy sigh, “I am going to take a look at that when we get back to the cabin.”

“Well, I’m taking some of your fries,” Root replied. It was all a little bit strange being asked about your wellbeing. This must be what its like to have people that care about you, Root thought. This was something she hadn’t experienced since she was a child. She turned and took a fry from Sameen’s fast food bag. The other woman angrily huffed in annoyance but didn’t comment any further.

When they got to the cabin, the tiny building that Root had been renting felt cold and uninviting. Root hurried over and flicked on the lights, motioning for Shaw to follow her to drop off the bags in the master bedroom. It was a small cabin with just a kitchen, living room, master bath, and master bedroom. Root would have asked The Machine to book some place that was a little fancier if she knew that Shaw was staying. Well, a hot tub would have been nice anyway, they could have made use of that.

“I’m guessing the other guy looks worse,” Shaw came up behind Root and placed her suitcase on the bed. She gave Root’s bruises and lip another once over as she unzipped the bag. Shaw pulled out a number of fire arms along with a clean pair of clothes.

“Hmm... sweetie, are you accusing me of starting a fight?” Root hummed in her usual manner but she knew where this was going.

“Yeah, and I’m saying that you look like you got the shit knocked out of you too.”

“Did She tell you that?” Root asked and by She, Root meant The Machine.

“She showed me that,” Shaw finished. The response caused Root to pause briefly.

“What do you mean by shown?”

“A live feed, on my phone,” Shaw wasn’t looking at Root but rummaged through a batch of identical black clothing rather angrily. “You know what, never mind.”

She wasn’t expecting The Machine to do something like this. Root didn’t know why she didn’t want Sameen to know some of her work habits but she didn’t. It was only meant for Root and The Machine to know. Root could see the red hot anger in Sameen’s eyes from what she had seen. Root knew that she could do this mission herself but The Machine had thought otherwise. She was going to have to have a word with Her when Sameen was out of earshot.

“Huh,” Root replied dismissively. This was a topic she didn’t want to continue with Shaw.

“Is that all your going to say, your not going to explain yourself?” Shaw’s anger had bled through unchecked.

“Sameen, I would have never have let it get that far.”

At that, Shaw slammed the suitcase shut, slightly startling the hacker at the force of it. She turned to Root and regarded her for a second. Her eyes were dark and unmoving and her expression was completely unreadable. It was one of those rare moments that Root knew that she had struck a nerve in Shaw somewhere. Whatever Shaw was thinking about saying next, she didn’t continue with the topic.

  
“I’m taking a shower and I’m checking those bruises when I get out.” She said instead. They weren’t discussing this anymore. Root knew that Sameen was going to go cool down alone and then they’d both come back as if they’d both had never discussed this. It was better this way.

Shaw marched off to the the master bath and slammed the door. For the first time all day, everything felt eerily empty. The hacker no longer had to worry about anything for the rest of the night. The last ounces of adrenaline that had managed to keep her focused was gone. Pain started to take it’s place, her lip throbbed, her throat was sore, and her side ached. She got her own change of clothes and slid into a pair of warm purple pajamas with little elephants on them.

This was supposed to be a fun little getaway. Alone time in a cabin and an easy number to handle. The Machine had advised that Root could handle this one without a problem and that she’d be back in New York within a week. It was now way longer than a week. The longer the mission lasted, the lower the success rate the The Machine whispered in Root’s ear went.

The thing was, Root had started to get dependent on being in Shaw’s company. She wasn’t exactly as angry with The Machine for inviting Shaw over, just at the way She had done it. Anyway, now that Shaw was here Root wasn’t complaining. She never thought that she’d actually want to be in someone else’s presence, Root was used to working alone.

Root wondered if Shaw felt the same but she could never tell. The Persian woman almost always seemed so stoic and unmoving. She got a thrill every time she could get under Shaw’s skin. The other woman seemed to get a little angrier and a little defensive, maybe even flustered when Root did it. Root never thought that she’d get so lucky for those brief moments. She knew she was the only one able to insight those reactions.

“You showed her?” Root said out loud for The Machine.

“Yes, Analogue interface was in danger,” The Machine answered in Root’s ear.

“Are my chances really that bad flying solo?” Root asked. She was curious because The Machine rarely ever calls Sameen for backup in the middle of a mission unless its serious. Especially without consulting Root about it first.

“Analogue Interface, 98.6% probability of mission failure. 97.5% probability of detection of all current assets.”

“Hmm, really?,” Root said and thought about the numbers for a moment. “What was the breaking point? Two days ago I had an 83.9% mission success rate.”

“February 21st, Analogue Interface deviated from current mission objective.”

“I can be a bit of a wild card.” Root said out loud to both herself and The Machine. Root knew the time table now. The Machine had shown Shaw the live feed of Root’s “deviant behavior” and booked her on the first flight out to the cabin. Now that Root thought about it, it was kinda adorable that The Machine cared.

“Analogue interface must not expire. Assets must not be detected.”

“Your such a sweet talker,” Root smiled. She knew The Machine’s concern, she even felt a sense of warmth from it but Root would have preferred if The Machine would have just asked Shaw to come a different way. “Please, don’t show Shaw something like that again without asking me first.”

“I understand. I am sorry if I have upset you.”

Shuffling was heard from the master bath and steam from the shower leaked into the room as Sameen opened the door. She looked grumpy as she towel dried her hair in her signature boy shorts and black tank top, the cold didn’t seem to bother her. Root watched appreciatively as Shaw made her way towards her.

“I can’t believe you sometimes,” Shaw roughly grabbed at Root’s purple pajamas and unbuttoned the front. She paused briefly as she ran her hand over a cartoonish elephant and rolled her eyes.

“Those elephants would be shocked if they knew what I did for a living,” Root was trying to lighten the mood.

“They’d be shocked if they knew what I’d do to you if you didn’t shut up.”

“Oh, is that a promise?” Root cocked her head to the side but with one look from Sameen she knew that she shouldn’t push it. With her fingers, Root motioned that her lips were sealed. She knew that she might end up with another bruise and for once Root wasn’t in the mood for it.

The hacker silently let Shaw work as she checked Root’s injuries and for any sign of a concussion. She liked that Shaw was rough and handsy even when she was one hundred percent about business. This was something she wasn’t going to let slip to Shaw. It was something that the other woman was unaware of. She just wanted to focus on Shaw, her roughness, her quirks, and not about her day. Root shifted her thoughts away from her past. She just wanted to focus on her here and now.

Besides feeling horrible, Root passed with flying colors and Shaw left her to button up her pajamas again. Shaw walked back into the master bath to blow dry her hair and tie it back up in a pony tail.

“Planning on going somewhere, sweetie?” Root asked when the other woman walked back in and started putting on her winter gear.

“Yeah, we still have a number to watch.”

“Shaw, he’s already dead,” Root got under the covers and pulled them up to her chin. The Machine informed her of his death on the drive back to the cabin.

“Fuck. You knew about this?” Shaw stopped and regarded Root for a moment.

“Uh-huh.”

“Root, why didn’t you tell me?”

“It’s not important.” Root turned on her side to face Shaw as the other woman began to strip again. Once again Shaw was back in her boy shorts and tank top but Root was a little sad that Shaw didn’t take out her pony tail. She then got under the covers beside Root.

“Okay, then what are we still doing here?”

“Some of his cronies are going to come look for him once he doesn’t check in in the morning. We have to be there,” Root turned off the light on the nightstand, engulfing the room in darkness.

“Harold was alerted of that guys number at the same time I got on the flight. Was it because of these thugs or was it because of you?”

“I don’t know,” Root replied. Her eyes were starting to get adjusted to the light just enough to make out Shaw’s features. Even if she could see clearly, she knew that Shaw wasn’t shocked at all at her admission. Not like Harry would be, Shaw probably didn’t care less. “Anyway, he had it coming.”

The Machine buzzed disapprovingly in Root’s ear and the hacker ignored her. Shaw didn’t say anything.

>>>

The way Root operated always confused Shaw. She didn’t see the point in theatrics and mind games. What Root had done was all for show, Shaw wasn’t sure if the hacker did it to get some kind of twisted rise. It was reckless and it was something that Shaw couldn’t get out of her head. Root had always had the upper hand the whole time, it didn’t go beyond punching, kicking, and a choke hold that Shaw had taught Root how to get out of beforehand but it was still difficult to watch as the hacker let it continue. She knew that Root had done this before, how the hacker was tortured by Control and probably many more times before they had even met.

“Damn it, Root,” Shaw said. It was four in the morning and Shaw tossed angrily to her side unable to get back to sleep as her mind replayed what The Machine had shown her. The hacker herself was sleeping safe from harm beside her. So, Shaw didn’t feel the need to quiet her grumbling for someone that wouldn’t hear anyway.

“Shaw?” The other woman rolled over. Unfortunately, Root wasn’t as fast asleep as she thought she was.

“Hey, get some sleep,” Shaw mumbled in return.

“Shh, I would,” Root started lazily and wrapped her arm around Shaw, pulling her closer . “If you’d just stop being grumpy.”

“Fine,” Shaw said, half wishing she’d stayed silent and the other half not minding this closeness at all. She usually hated cuddling but the other woman was warm and very much still breathing so it wasn’t all bad.

“Good,” Root placed a lazy kiss on Shaw’s shoulder. “We have a busy day tomorrow... I want you to meet Hannah.” That was when Shaw knew that Root really wasn’t fully awake. She probably wouldn’t even remember this in the morning. “Sameen, you have to tell her that I’m sorry.”

“You can do that,” Shaw went along with Root’s sleep talk.

“No, I cant. She wont listen... no one will listen.”

“I’m listening.” Shaw whispered. The hacker gave her an approving hum in response and didn’t say anything more.

After the exchange Shaw was left in silence. She could make out the soft features of Root’s face in the darkness. The hacker looked so peaceful sleeping beside her. “Damn it, Root,” Shaw thought to herself this time.

An hour later Shaw got up. The hacker had curled herself up on the far corner of the bed in her sleep so Shaw didn’t have to worry about waking her. She silently got changed and ready for the day without waking Root. It was time for her to do what The Machine sent her here for. It might make Root angry or it might not but at least she’d be a lot safer. Shaw didn’t know what Root was planning and the Machine didn’t seem to like Root’s odds with whatever knowledge She was withholding. This would hopefully make the statistics go in their favor.

ONE HOUR AND 20 MINUTES.

Shaw’s phone buzzed with a text message from an unknown number but Shaw knew it was from The Machine. She wasn’t sure if that was the time she’d have until Root woke up or if that was the time she’d have until those thugs came. Quietly, Shaw exited the cabin and walked to the neighboring cabin near by.

Sameen had seen the inside of this building before. The minimalistic furniture in the room was thrown haphazardly out of the way during a struggle. Sameen had seen this with her own eyes. It haunted her in her sleep less than an hour ago. Shaw rounded the corner to the kitchen while following a trail of blood in the living room. She didn’t bother to draw her gun because she knew the occupant was no longer a threat.

In the center of the kitchen a man sat zip tied to a wooden chair. It was obvious that he was dead. His head was lulled to the side and his eyes starred blankly into nothingness. The smell of decay had started to settle in but it wasn’t completely unbearable yet, the cold had slowed down the process. This is where Root left him when she went to go pick up Shaw from the airport.

His name was Todd Vincente and he was a rather unassuming man. He was just a 42 year old high payed government intelligence employee with a high security clearance. He also so happened to be giving away government secretes to the highest bidder with a hobby of picking up attractive woman and burying them in shallow graves. Of course this was something that picked up on Root’s personal radar. The hacker had spent the last couple of weeks positioning herself as this mans latest victim only to turn the tables on him. She had a personal vendetta on him.

“Why the hell did you even give her this number?” Shaw growled into nothingness. She knew there were hidden cameras set up around the house for this sick mans pleasure that The Machine had been exploiting for her own use.

NO OTHER ASSETS TO DEPLOY FOR RELEVANT NUMBERS.

The Machine answered through text message.

“You have me!” Shaw burst out.

I KNOW. I THOUGHT ANALOGUE INTERFACE WAS READY. I WAS WRONG.

“Hell, you were,” Shaw mumbled and opened up the kitchen pantry. She found a container of bleach and some cleaning supplies.

ONE HOUR AND TWO MINUTES.

The Machine had sent Shaw one last text. It was probably to remind Shaw of the task at hand and to keep her anger in check. She didn’t want Shaw doing anything reckless either. Anyway, it didn’t matter because the man was already dead. Shaw didn’t need to pay him back for what he did to Root. The hacker had already done it herself at the cost of forgetting about the purpose of the rest of the mission.

Shaw spent the next forty minutes cleaning up blood (some belonging to Root) and erasing all trace of their presence from the property. The next task at hand was to get into the number’s lap top.

“Okay, now what?” Shaw said as she stood in front of the man’s computer. It was closed on the kitchen table, waiting for the man to resume his work. It was no surprise that a group of thugs were on their way when it was noticeable that something was awry with him. They were going to erase all traces of his existence and Root just couldn’t have that. If they did then it meant that all of the woman that he had killed would never be found.

Shaw’s phone buzzed:

USE HAROLD’S FLASH DRIVE. LET ME DO THE REST.

Shaw read the text and did as The Machine asked. She turned on the laptop and inserted the flash drive. It only took two minutes before it ejected itself from the computer and Shaw put the small black object back in her pocket.

That was it, Shaw had completed her morning objective with ten minutes to spare.

“I hope you know what your doing,” Shaw said for The Machine to hear and then shook her head in disbelief. She never thought she’d actually be talking to The Machine. Especially, saying things like The Machine was an actual person. Shaw knew The Machine wasn’t actually a person even if it felt like it sometimes.

>>>

That morning Root woke up alone in bed. The Machine had worked as her alarm clock and got her up at five thirty in the morning. She showered, got a quick granola bar for breakfast, and quickly left the cabin. The Machine had informed her that Shaw was already with the number.

“Morning Sameen,” Root found Shaw in the kitchen of the enemies cabin. She looked bored leaning against the kitchen sink.

“Root,” Shaw said in acknowledgment.

“You were busy this morning,” Root looked around and found the place spotless. The only thing that was out of place was the dead body that remained in the center of the room.

“Taking out the trash,” Shaw replied. The other woman then straightened up and turned directly to Root. “Root, listen to me. Those men that are going to come to clean this place up... we can’t kill them, okay?”

“Shaw-” Root started.

“I know you want revenge for those woman. You can’t start a fire that you can’t control and you can’t do anything for the dead.”

“Bu-”

“The dead are dead. Let’s let the local law enforcement do their job.” Shaw finished.

“Root, listen to Shaw,” The Machine whispered in her ear.

Root was silent for a moment. She mulled the idea over in her head before deciding on an answer. She knew that Shaw and The Machine were right. There was a greater plan involved and she had gotten sidetracked. It was for everyone’s best interest if she could keep her cool. Both Root and The Machine knew, that if Sameen wasn’t here that she’d tear a whole in the universe.

“I don’t know, Sameen.”

“Yes, you do.”

“I know but I don’t want to.”

“What are you going to do? Kill all those thugs yourself, get sloppy, get the local law enforcement on your tail?” Shaw stepped closer and Root wasn’t exactly sure what the other woman was going to do. Root just nodded.

“I understand.”

“No, you don’t, if you did then you wouldn’t be jeopardizing all of us. The Machine, Harold, John... and hell, even the dog. We can’t afford for you to get sloppy. It’s not just you anymore, we are all in this together.”

A sound at the door distracted Shaw and both of their attention went to the location.

“Their here,” The Machine informed Root.

“The party is about to arrive.” Root said with a slight tilt of the head. What could she really do now anyway? The Machine and Shaw wanted her to go back with them and leave the police work to the local authorities. They were right but she didn’t want them to be. She wanted to stay and destroy this intelligence ring from the inside out and help find closure for the victims families. That could take years and she never really found Hannah’s body herself... that was with the help of Harold and The Machine.

“Just don’t do anything stupid,” Shaw pulled out her side arm. There really wasn’t much time to respond. She needed The Machine, the team, and she needed Shaw. In response, Root dipped her head down and gave Shaw a quick kiss on the lips. Hopefully, giving off the message that she wasn’t going to do anything stupid.

Just seconds later two men appeared in the kitchen doorway. They seemed surprised to find the two woman.

“Hi, boys, haven’t you ever heard of knocking?” Root smiled. They were just about to draw their weapons when four gunshots where heard in quick succession. Both of the men dropped to the ground and writhed in pain from the damage to their kneecaps. Shaw had her handgun drawn.

“See no trouble,” Root raised her hands up and wiggled her fingers. Shaw rolled her eyes and went back to the living space.

“Any more of them?”

“Two more of them outside. They heard the gunshots, one is coming through the front and the other is going to the back.” Root announced and got out her own guns out. The Machine had informed her of their presence.

“I got the front. You take the back.” Shaw said.

“Sounds like a party, sweetie,”

The two separated to their designated location in the cabin. The man that Root was tasked with was plainly in sight. It was painfully obvious that she could see the top of the man’s head through the back window. This was a clean headshot and it was like he wasn’t even trying. This had to be an amateur.

“The safety is on,” The Machine buzzed in her ear.

Yep, he was definitely an amateur.

Root waited until the man opened the door. He looked a little shocked to see her standing completely unconcerned inside the cabin. She smiled and cocked her head to the side.

“Hands up where I can see them!” He yelled.

“Sorry, Darling, I just can’t do that,” Root lifted her two handguns. The man lifted his gun in response but he failed to fire. With two loud pops, Root put one bullet in each kneecap. “Check the safety next time.”

Root walked over the man and regarded him for a second. He was working with Vincente and the world really didn’t need more men like him in it. She really didn’t know the extent in which he knew about Vincente’s side hobby but guilt by association, right?

“Root,” Shaw was back at the hacker’s side. She hadn’t noticed because The Machine hadn’t given her a heads up. Shaw was giving Root a look like she knew what Root was thinking and that she didn’t like it one bit. “Lets go.”

“What if I say no?” Root asked.

“Then I’ll knock you out and drag your sorry ass out myself,” Shaw looked angry and taken back.

“What about the rest of the mission?” She still had a computer to hack and names to trace.

“It’s already taken care of.”

“Really?”

“Yes, really.” Shaw looked agitated, like she was accusing Root of wasting time. “Look, Root, lets just go home.”

“Home?” That was right, the hacker had someplace she belonged to now.

“Yes, damn it just come home with me,” Shaw was extremely fed up by this point and just walked up to Root and took her by the arm, and pulled her forward towards the front door.

>>>

A week later Root was waiting at the front doorstep of Sameen’s apartment with a bag of take out. It was filled with orange chicken, beef and broccoli, and some egg drop soup. Root had followed Shaw back to New York on the plane that same day after the events of the cabin. She had spent the entire flight starring out the window and dozing off while Shaw watched Borne Identity on her phone. When the time was right and after the plane landed, Root had given Shaw the slip inside the busy airport. The hacker needed some time to regroup by herself. It wasn’t Shaw’s fault, the Chinese takeout was an attempt at a peace offering for the sudden departure.

“Hi, sweetie,” Root said cheerily as Shaw opened her door for her an afternoon run. The hacker was dressed up for a cover and she took off her blonde wig for dramatic effect with her takeout free hand.

“Root-” Shaw had been caught slightly off guard. “Where the hell have you been?”

“Around,” Root handed Shaw the bag of takeout and walked into Shaw’s apartment as if she owned the place. It was still the same as it had always been. It felt familiar and welcoming to the hacker. Shaw followed behind Root and closed the door behind them.

“Harold’s starting to ask about you,” Shaw said as she dug out the orange chicken and handed it to Root.

“Did you tell him?” Root gladly excepted the box of food.

“No. Have you watched the news?” Shaw changed the topic and took out the second box of takeout.

“Yeah,” Root took out some chopsticks and handed Shaw a container of soup. She really didn’t want to comment too much on it.

“The authorities are excavating the entire property, they found twelve bodies,” Shaw said and dug into her box of takeout and then dropped the subject as she sat down at her small dining table, her attention now focused on the beef and broccoli. Root silently picked at her food but found that she really wasn’t that hungry anymore.

“Do you mind if I put this in your fridge?” Root said and got a nod from Shaw. Root got up and placed the takeout box beside some ammunition rounds and a half jug of milk.

The hacker then walked to Shaw’s bathroom without saying a word and turned on the shower. The Machine had her staying in a hotel that was far from clean in order to keep up her newest cover. It might have been half the reason why she’d stopped by Sameen’s place. The other half was from generally missing Shaw and from slight guilt of giving her the slip after she’d come all the way to help Root.

Root grabbed a clean towel and stripped in the bathroom with the door open. The hacker knew Shaw was watching her and she left the door open as an invitation if she’d want something more. Shaw didn’t come and the hacker wasn’t going to lie, she was disappointed. She showered and wrapped the towel around herself before going back to where she left Shaw. The other woman was still sitting at the table and she looked agitated.

“Are you okay, sweetie?” Root asked and she realized Shaw’s eye line was at her neck. All of her bruises hadn’t fully healed yet and she’d forgot she had them. She didn’t realize what kind of impact watching that video had had on Shaw. She knew the other woman cared but not that she could have cared that much. They were friends with benefits that both so happened to be adrenaline junkies. Then, sure, Root felt a little more than that for Shaw but she always knew that it was going to be one sided. That was okay, this setup was more than Root could have ever asked for.

Shaw continued to stare as Root picked through some clothes that she had left at Sameen’s place a couple of months ago. She knew exactly the drawer that Shaw kept them in. She was glad to find that the other woman didn’t throw them out.

“What the hell am I going to do with you?” Shaw grumbled and finally got up to stand by Root, helping her fish out a pair of Root’s skinny jeans from the bottom of the drawer. Root stopped Shaw from looking any further.

“I can name a few.”

“Shut it,” Shaw pinched the bridge of her nose with a heavy sigh. “Okay, just tell me you didn’t let anyone else hurt you on purpose while you were gone.”

“It bothers you, sweetie?”

“The Machine would be disappointed if you died.”

“The Machine, are you sure?” Root felt a surge of joy knowing that Shaw was starting to except The Machine as a valid member of the team and not as just some personal assistance tool that told you to get to the dentists office on Tuesday. Root knew this was also some type of Shaw avoidance tactic.

“Yeah,” Shaw shrugged like her comment was no big deal.

Root was curious, she took Shaw by the hands and placed them around her neck, making sure Shaw’s fingers were resting above her bruises. Shaw looked at her questionably.

“I want you to squeeze and I want it to hurt,” Root looked Shaw in the eye. She wanted to know how much it really did bother Shaw. She wanted it to bother Shaw.

Root felt the muscles under Shaw’s fingers twitch but the other woman stood completely still. “Whats wrong, sweetie?”

“You know your a pain in the ass?” Shaw’s fingers tightened slightly but she seemed hesitant to push further.

“Sameen. Harder.” Root dared the other woman. Sameen blinked back but didn’t budge. Root had gotten the answer she was looking for and she dropped her hands from around Shaw’s fingers and in return, Shaw dropped her hands off of Root’s neck. They stood quietly for a bit, Root soaking up the meaning of the encounter. She got into Shaw’s space and dipped her head in for a kiss. Shaw kissed back.

 

 

 

 


End file.
